The week's best bites

It was a week of memorable bites:

The prosciutto balls at Joe's Superette on Smith Street in Carroll Gardens. There's still very little else on the shelves in the store, but those creamy, tangy, peppery, crunchy prosciutto balls rock. And the best thing: They're 50 cents each. I buy 'em by the dozen. Photo courtesy of iheartbacon

The Kobe Beef appetizer at Morimoto. It's one of the first preparations of Kobe Beef that makes me understand what all the fuss it about, and why it may actually be worth the money. At Morimoto it's carpaccio thin and every little slice is decadently rich, meaty and fatty at the same time. I also have to say that this was the first time I ate in the main dining room at Morimoto, and it was a lot of fun: fun to look at, fun to eat in, and fun to be able to actually talk to my tablemates without screaming. They have these great fiiberglass sheets between the tables that really do soundproof the place.

The cayenne cheese sticks at Murray's Cheese Shop. I have had a ton of cheese sticks in my time, but the Murray's cheesesticks were buttery, tangy and had just the right amount of kick to them.

The open-faced sturgeon or the sturgeon salad sandwich at Blue Ribbon Market, 14 Bedford St., 212-647-0408, which in its own quiet way has become one of the best sandwich joints in New York. Here's what happens there: you order your sandwich, they slice one of the Blue Ribbon breads, toast the bread and top both pieces with whatever filling you choose. I don't know what's better, the perfectly put together fillings or the slices of toast the fillings come on. The piece (of toast) de resistance, the Mexican honeys the Brombergs have started to import.

Two fine slices at Joe's on Carmine Street. Ignore the glitzy Abitino's that opened in the original Joe's location on the corner of Carmine and Bleecker. Go to what was Joe's II for just a solid, solid slice, with either fresh or aged mozzarella. It's what a New York slice should be and rarely is these days.

The pizzas in general at the Sullivan Street Bakery. I love the one made with romano cheese, but the potato pizza, pictured here, is damned good as well. made with romano cheese at Sullivan Street Bakery. It's yeasty and crunchy and crisp and just moist enough at the same time.

[[2,left]] The skirt steak with onion marmalade at Casa Mono. The steak is piled like lincoln logs on a coarse puree of nuts and red peppers, then topped with the sweetest onions imaginable. Andy Nusser is one of the great cooks in New York that nobody knows about. Photo courtesy of crispywaffle

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